# When did Whoopi Goldberg get her Ph.D.? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 23, 2005, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-whoopi-goldberg-get-her-ph-d/295895 "2005-03-23T15:50:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2022, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-whoopi-goldberg-get-her-ph-d/295895/21 "2022-02-02T19:44:39Z")
> [@Jacrab](#): > > What is that supposed to mean Bryan?? - > **[Guinan](https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Guinan)** > > Guinan was an enigmatic bartender who ran Ten Forward, the lounge aboard the USS Enterprise-D. She was well known for her wise counsel, which proved invaluable many times. Guinan was an El-Aurian, a race of "listeners" who were scattered by the Borg.... Check the “Chronology” section. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2022, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-whoopi-goldberg-get-her-ph-d/295895/22 "2022-02-02T20:20:54Z")
> [@Snooooopy](#): > > Perhaps she threatened to subject the Ph.D. committee members to her lousy jokes until they tossed a degree at her out of fear for their lives. I can’t remember who(it _might_ have been Robert Smiegel), but some comedian used to say, “I’ll give $10,000 to anyone who can show me footage of Whoopi Goldberg being funny.” ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2022, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-whoopi-goldberg-get-her-ph-d/295895/23 "2022-02-02T22:23:03Z")
El-Aurian don’t crack! ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2022, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-whoopi-goldberg-get-her-ph-d/295895/24 "2022-02-03T00:40:14Z")
Guy who played Grandpa on Munsters , Al Lewis , claimed to have a PhD but it wasn’t true ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2022, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-whoopi-goldberg-get-her-ph-d/295895/25 "2022-02-03T01:47:35Z")
…. nm ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2022, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-whoopi-goldberg-get-her-ph-d/295895/26 "2022-02-03T02:17:44Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > I can’t remember who(it _might_ have been Robert Smiegel), but some comedian used to say, “I’ll give $10,000 to anyone who can show me footage of Whoopi Goldberg being funny.” Yesterday she said “Words matter, and mine are no exception.” I laughed. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2022, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-whoopi-goldberg-get-her-ph-d/295895/27 "2022-02-03T15:25:20Z")
> [@Dag\_Otto](#): > > Yesterday she said “Words matter, and mine are no exception.” > > I laughed. Okay, that was funny! ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2022, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-whoopi-goldberg-get-her-ph-d/295895/28 "2022-02-04T02:46:46Z")
This was discussed in this thread years ago: > [@Celebrities with REAL (Not Honorary) Doctorates](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-with-real-not-honorary-doctorates/392613): > > How many celebrities can you think of who have earned actual Ph. D’s from actual universities? Academics who’ve become famous writers (Isaac Asimov, Richard Dawkins, et al.) aren’t really what I’m looking for. Rather, are there any famous musicians, actors, novelists and such who happen to have gone to graduate school and earned doctorates? I know Bill Cosby got a Ph. D. in education, and Queen guitarist Brian May was in a doctoral program for astronomy (not sure whether he ever actually recei… My conclusion then, and still my conclusion now, is that someone long ago somehow wrongly decided that Whoopi Goldberg had a Ph.D. in literature. They mentioned this in some website. Other people copied it and put it in their own websites. It’s not true. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2022, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-whoopi-goldberg-get-her-ph-d/295895/29 "2022-02-13T00:47:27Z")
Okay, made _me_ laugh. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-whoopi-goldberg-get-her-ph-d/295895.md?page=1)